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Primaluna DiaLogue Premium preamp

Hello all.

I just wanted to drop a quick note to the forums stating that I purchased a Primaluna DiaLogue Premium preamplifier about a month ago from Upscale Audio.. (thanks Kevin for your help).. and wanted to convey in some way how pleased I am with my purchase. I was using a solid state unit for a lot of years [at nearly three times the cost] and as much as I enjoyed that unit, the Primaluna is in another league compared to quality of sound,which of course, would be the reason why any of us look to upgrade our systems.

This preamp has a fantastic way of causing the natural sound of the music to ebb and flow that only a well made tube pre can do. As expected, the mid's on this unit are glorious and just plain sound like real music, communicating to my ears what tubes do so well,that is...a naturally organic and live..be there.. musical presentation.

Also,as much as the mid's impress, the highs and lows are just as good as the mid's. The bass on this pre just plain rocks. This thing digs deep and does so without any reservation. I never would have thought that a tube preamp could have better bass performance than my solid state unit..but for me,in my system, without a doubt, it most certainly does. I'm guessing the high build quality and the massive transformers used in this design are the reasons why it digs so deep, and does so without apologies.

The highs are yet another fantastic area where the Primaluna grabs your attention, and I mean so in a most positive way.The highs are very natural and revealing at the same time, without any added fatigue or brightness in presentation.That in and of itself is a rare combo for any piece of kit...let alone one that is so reasonably priced,that is.. by high end standards.

The reviews of this preamp online by some of the better rags out there are a fair and truthful assessment of the virtues of this preamp. I can also give the Primaluna my highest recommendation to anyone looking for a musical component that really does deliver the goods in a smart and beautiful package.

I would like to thank Primaluna for a great job in the design, build, and sound quality of this DiaLogue Premium Preamplifier. And to do so at a fair asking price is the icing on the cake.....

Kudos Primaluna!!
aolmrd1241
saki70
907 posts
 
I will wholeheartedly second Tomcy6's recommendation of the Amperex 7316's . I have tried most all of the 12AU7 iterations (thanks Bigshutterbug) and found these to be the best throughout the frequency spectrum and musicality .
When used with the Shuguang Black Treasure 6CA7 power tubes I am done rolling tubes ! I have tried various EL-34's , 6L6 , KT-88 and KT-120 power tubes .
A caveat , I am using the Dialogue Premium Integrated , not separates .

Happy Tunes
dsper
663 posts
 
I purchased a Primaluna Dialogue Premium preamp about six months ago.

I ran into a bit of trouble with it early on and Kevin Deal took care of it. He spent a lot of time on the phone with me and arranged a local inspection and repair. It turned out to be a bad capacitor, which was replaced, and it is running just fine now.

The Dialogue Premium replaced a W4S Preamp. Both are very resolving but the Primaluna has more life to it and you can see deeper into the music. I had a Prologue One in my system earlier and the Dialogue Premium is much more resolving than the less expensive unit.

The rest of my digital system is Cullen cables, a Ric Schultz modified Oppo 105, W4S ST1000 amp, and Maggie 3.6 speakers with one DWM woofer (I am looking for another used DWM).

The old adage is true that some recordings sound good and others sound bad. The Dialogue Premium will let you hear vocal syllibance if a recording is a little bit too "hot".

My system tends towards the lean side of neutral and I installed two GE 1950's 12au7's, which added the bloom and substance that I wanted to hear.

The Dialogue Premium is a tank at 50 pounds with separate power supplies and tube rectification. For what it is worth, the technician that worked on it said that it was very cleanly laid out and the workmanship was of high quality.

I am happy with it and would think that my next upgrade would be some thing other than the preamp.
therealist
22 posts
 
Thanks. I'm buying speakers and will most likely do tubes to fine tune. I called Upscale and Kevin was terrific and though people came up to him saying someone else was calling for him he said he's call them back and stayed with me to talk about not where I'm at now but where I'm trying to go and that was refreshing. Dealers don't do that. They just blurt out "this is the best" without asking anything about me.

He has some 7316's he said but would have to find them and if I want some he would try. He said that they are the same thing as an Amperex 12AU7 but they were designed for early computer use and read some stuff from an Amperex book. At that point it was over my head.

He said that I could use most any tubes I want. But the speakers I'm looking at are slightly demanding so he mentioned KT150. I'm going to investigate.

I am extremely happy with my choice in PrimaLuna. I like fine mechanical things like cars and watches.

I'm trying to think about how I would compare PrimaLuna. Maybe like a BMW M3. Incredibly fast and as quick as Italian exotics on a track but not priced like one. And you can drive it every day. Had I spent more it would have been for ego.
saki70
907 posts
 
I have found the 7316's to be the best of many different 12AU7 iterations that I have tried . I don't think that you will be disappointed with them .
I have found that using only 2 on each side in the 2 front most sockets with a Primaluna 12AU7 in the last position on each side to be enough of a good thing . When I tried 7316's in all of the positions , I could not discern any difference than the above combination of 4 7316's and 2 PL 12AU7's . The PL's are quite neutral in their presentation .

Good Luck
facten
2,878 posts
 
Brent Jesse's website indicates he has Amperex 7316s; the Tubestore indicates Matsushita 7316s, a couple of others have them as well
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